General Motors lost 4 billion but will pay back bailout by June!

1. 72

   earnestshubposted 14 years ago

   GM reckon that although they had a lousy year, the will be in profit this year and all the bailout money is to be paid back by June.
   
   There have been quite a few companies paying the bailout money back. Is this another positive indicator?

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      Padrinoposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      That money will be instrumental in paying the employees hired during this recession! That would be the GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES HIRED, not a real indicator of private industry growth.
      
      But you already knew that, huh?

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         earnestshubposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Where did you get the stats for that from? I would not have thought all the money will be used in that way.
         If GMH had failed, do you think that would have been a better outcome?
         I bet you did not like paying the bailout for GM, but I don't know what's wrong with having it returned!

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         1. 59

            Padrinoposted 14 years agoin reply to this

            Stats?
            
            If GM would have failed it would have been a better outcome? Yes, yes it would have! Just as if AIG had been allowed to fail and every other business in the private sector that doesn't make it!
            
            If the bailout had not occurred then there would have not been any need in a payback.
            
            Simple...

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            1. 72

               earnestshubposted 14 years agoin reply to this

               I disagree. I believe America would have no credit without the financial institutions being bailed, I hated the idea of the bailout too, but am pleased to see it is working to some degree. As for GM, surely employment is a major factor for locals. If they are to recover and start hiring they needed some breathing space. I admit GM is a mess, but the whole industry is in deep trouble, so they are not unique and may still fail, but the people will have the money returned from bailing them this time, and I feel pretty sure they will not get a second chance.

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      agvulpesposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      I do so smell a rat here somewhere!  How could they have done it so quickly?
      Were things not as bad as they said when they got the bail out?
      
      Bail-out who had their Hand out and got the big payouts at the time?
      
      Whats the old saying "If things look too good to be true"

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      1. 72

         earnestshubposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         Hi agvulpes. My mistake. As Wyanjen pointed out, it was a loan, not a bail out...... but yes it is a fast turnaround. GM still owes a lot of money until it has enough credibility to allow the shares the US Government took to be sold though.
         The total bill is around 50 billion.

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   3. 0

      cosetteposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      all signs point to Yes, said cosette's magic 8 ball.
      
      i am actually thinking of getting some GM stock...

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2. 71

   Cagsilposted 14 years ago

   The key to the Economy isn't whether the businesses are back on their feet. It is about the people getting back to work.
   
   Those who are not working, but are looking for work are not spending money in the Economy, like they should.
   
   Therefore, it's B.S.
   
   Too many people are still struggling to pay for things. The main freaking reason for the collapse of the Economy is because too many things were rising too fast, such as products, services and goods.
   
   The real estate boom which was connected to the pathetic CDO accounts fund managers were handling, were written based on the real estate market to continue to grow at 6%-8% year over year and not stop.
   
   That is foolish. There always has to be a pull-back. The cost of real estate rises(my rent went up almost $300 per month) and leaves very little for other things that are necessary for living.
   
   The perception people have is that the Economy is going to get better, because people will get jobs, because they would rather do a job they do not want to do, for the fear of being homeless and not knowing where their next meal is going to come from.
   
   Unbelievable of the garbage people buy into without checking all the factors involved.(not intended to offend you)
   
   But, there are plenty of factors and right now the only one being applied is fear.
   
   That's my take on it.

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      Shadesbreathposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      
      
      The housing bubble popping (among other things) knocked down the house of cards, but if businesses don't get back on their feet, there won't be any jobs for people to "go back to work" to.  Business is where jobs come from.  And GM is one of the (was one of the) largest employers in the country.  You should be rooting for them, in my opinion.  I know I am.

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3. 0

   JeanMeriamposted 14 years ago

   I know nothing about GM in the US. The plant here in Canada seems to be getting back on its feet. They are rehiring and have added extra shifts. This came about when Toyota started having trouble, so I'm wondering if it's more that they are feeling hopeful than anything else.

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4. 70

   wyanjenposted 14 years ago

   Funny how the subject of interest never seems to make it's way into the conversation.
   See, because it was actually a loan. That point tends to get lost in the midst of all the heckling and fear mongering.
   
   
   
   My folks never asked me to repay the bailout money they sent me just after I got out of school...
   because it was not a loan. It was a bailout. See the difference?

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   1. 72

      earnestshubposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Good point! You are right of course, it was a loan.

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5. 70

   wyanjenposted 14 years ago

   "...thunderous denunciations from a small minority have manufactured the illusion of widespread hostility."
   
   This is from an article written by Alex Altman. He's not talking about the auto or bank bailouts, or about healthcare. But it sure does seem to fit every damn political discussion we've had in the last year or so.
   
   (His article is about a proposal to build a government facility in Maryland. Supporters want the hundreds of jobs it will bring, but protesters are complaining about increased traffic and noise.)
   
   Quick note to American taxpayers: whether you were for or against the auto bailout,
   thanks for the loan.
   From me and my friends and my neighbors.
   
   Don't think I'm being flip, I mean it.
   
   It is absolutely pouring rain right now, and I am feeling grateful for a roof on my head. I could never have imagined when I got out of college and found a high skill job with very good pay, that I would be facing homelessness despite working 50+ hours a week.
   
   So if you supported it, thank you.
   If you didn't, thanks to you too and enjoy the interest.

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   1. 72

      earnestshubposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Wyanjen, I hope GM can make a decent car that takes the lead and gives American cars a future. GMHolden in Australia are exporting strongly, and have a new 3 litre all alloy V6 to market.

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6. 59

   JON EWALLposted 14 years ago

   HUBBERS
   All the half truths floated by the Obama administration is coming out. The main street media is a farce.
   
   If you really want unbiased facts ,I suggest you read the business sections of-the local newspaper and//or watch the business programs on Fox Business,Fox News on Saturday and other cable networks. Skip from one to the other for a better understanding .

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      Ralph Deedsposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Here's an article that says the bailouts are working---
      
      What if, after all that panting over Washington’s bailout of the financial system, we learned that it actually worked?
      Enlarge This Image
      Chris Rank/Bloomberg News
      
      Joseph Stiglitz, the Nobel-prize winning economist at Columbia University, said the bailout would never really be repaid.
      
      And what if, after all that vitriol over the government’s risking hundreds of billions of dollars to rescue Wall Street from disaster, it turned out that taxpayers might actually lose nothing, or even make a profit?
      
      Could it be? Really?
      
      Every couple of months the Treasury Department takes a moment to strategically leak some good news about the bailouts. It happened again on Monday, when a Treasury official told The Wall Street Journal that America’s coffers would be only $89 billion lighter after all accounts were settled from the rescues, down from an earlier estimate of $250 billion.
      
      It’s enough to make us all feel rich, isn’t it?
      
      Inside the Obama administration, there are whispers of even greater optimism, with some officials suggesting that if the economic recovery continues apace, the bailout program could eventually turn from red to black.
      
      That may seem far-fetched to anyone who remembers the dire predictions about banks like Citigroup, but the numbers tell a different story. The government’s $45 billion investment in Citigroup alone is on track to make a profit of nearly $11 billion, plus $8 billion or so in interest and other fees.
      
      People inside the administration no longer refer to Citigroup as the “Death Star”; now it is a “profit center.”
      
      http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/13/busin … f=business

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      1. 59

         JON EWALLposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         RALPH
         Looks like there was a lot of smoke but no fire as reported. Just another government estimate way out and wrong again.
         What do you think or believe ?
         
         SOCIAL SECURITY paying out more than it takes in
         $1billion a day interest  paid on national debt per day
         Medicare going broke shortly
         CONGRESS STILL SPENDING AND BORROWING
         Health care cost  ??????
         
         WHERE DOES IT END ?

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7. 70

   Ralph Deedsposted 14 years ago

   Here are some surprising charts on the economic recovery.
   
   http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-k … lecti.html

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      ngurecoposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      OMG! Look at that Dow chart since February 2009 – it has been a spectacular rally of an uptrend in the stock market. Can one have any impartial indicator than the stock market?

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   2. 59

      JON EWALLposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      86Ralph Deeds
      You report
      the bailout program could eventually turn from red to black.
      
      Seems to me that  the bank bailout of $700 billion was under the  Bush administration with the approval of Obama and Mc Cain.
      Bush left office with a $1.3 billion deficit part of which was the $ 700 billion bailout.
      Wow, if that's true, Bush left with only a $600 billion deficit. Note that the Barak Obama congress ,only in office 16 months, has a 4x more deficit than Bush.
      I guess Bush's decision  for the bailout was right and probably saved the country.
      Tthe problems with the money being paid back is that Obama is refusing to use the money to pay down the national debt as required in the bill.
      
      Obama and the Democrat congress is responsible for the stimulus $787 billion which today has increased to $ 825 billion in the dark of nite.
      Remember the bill was hurried to avoid a deep recession. President Obama needed the money for shovel ready jobs in order to keep unemployment to 8%
      
      Today, 2/3s of the money has not been spent, unemployment is at 9.7%+ and  stimulus money has been sent to districts that do not exist. much of the spend money went to save union jobs , pork projects and states budget woes.
      
      Wake up America's, enough is enough, ask for the truth and speak out and be heard.
      
      With the help of Dylan Matthews, I pulled together a few different ways of looking at the Obama administration's economic record. We'll start with the one that matters most to people: JOB GROWTH (source: Steve Benen
      
      Ralph,  please try to understand that  the Obama  job growth on the chart is the increase in federal jobs and not the private jobs that is still standing at 9.7%+, .just more of half the true story by the main street press. Look beyond the propaganda out there in la-la land..

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8. 69

   MikeNVposted 14 years ago

   And will they repay the nearly $20 Billion the Government has handed to GMAC?
   
   http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/03/ … 8455.shtml
   
   The whole PR push behind GM making money is a ploy and a scam.  It's the Government once again trying to put a positive spin on the bailout.
   
   GM doesn't have money to pay back.  When you are taking $20 Billion from your financing arm - GMAC then just shifting it through to your production arm - GM.  You are doing nothing more than shuffling paperwork.
   
   Just more Government PR spin.
   
   All Obama has done is continue the Bush Policies of handing assets from the people to the Wealthy Elite.  Team Obama likes to blame Bush... then they do the exact same thing.  Borrow more and spend more.
   
   Obama is borrowing and spending at record rates.
   
   None of the bailout was for the people.  The money bailed out the Bankers.  And how is going to pay for all the additional spending and borrowing?  Who gets that bill?  YOU DO!
   
   Just this week... no money for a Jobs Bill.  But $4 Billion every month to fight Afghanistan.  No money for a jobs bill... but plenty of money to keep GM afloat.
   
   GM builds crap.  Just this week they had 4 of the 7 "WORST" cars according to research done by JD Powers/Consumer Reports.
   
   GM is billions and billions in debt.  How can they repay what they don't have?  Simple:  Get free money from the government through GMAC then tell the public they paid back the loan.
   
   What a load of crap.

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